The War On Drugs announce I Don’t Live Here Anymore, their first studio album in four years, out October 29th on Atlantic Records, and a 2022 North American and European tour. In conjunction with today’s announcement, they present its first song/video, “Living Proof.” Over the last 15 years, The War on Drugs have steadily emerged as one of this century’s great rock and roll synthesists, removing the gaps between the underground and the mainstream, between the obtuse and the anthemic, making records that wrestle a fractured past into a unified and engrossing present. The War On Drugs have never done that as well as they do with their fifth studio album, I Don’t Live Here Anymore, an uncommon rock album about one of our most common but daunting processes—resilience in the face of despair.
Just a month after The War On Drugs’ A Deeper Understandingreceived the 2018 Grammy for Best Rock Album, the core of bandleader Adam Granduciel, bassist Dave Hartley, and multi-instrumentalist Anthony LaMarca retreated to upstate New York to jam and cut new demos, working outside of the predetermined roles each member plays in the live setting. These sessions proved highly productive, turning out early versions of some of the most immediate songs onI Don’t Live Here Anymore. It was the start of a dozen-plus session odyssey that spanned three years and seven studios, including some of rock’s greatest sonic workshops like Electric Lady in New York and Los Angeles’ Sound City. Band leader Granducieland trusted co-producer/engineer Shawn Everett spent untold hours peeling back every piece of these songs and rebuilding them.
One of the most memorable sessions occurred in May 2019 at Electro-Vox, in which the band’s entire line-up — rounded out by keyboardist Robbie Bennett, drummer Charlie Hall, and saxophonist Jon Natchez — convened to record the affecting album opener “Living Proof.” Typically, Granduciel assembles The War On Drugs records from reams of overdubs, like a kind of rock ‘n’ roll jigsaw puzzle. But for “Living Proof,” the track came together in real time, as the musicians drew on their chemistry as a live unit to summon some extemporaneous magic. The immediacy of the performance was appropriate for one of the most personal songs Granduciel has ever written.
The “Living Proof” video, directed by filmmaker Emmett Malloy, and shot on 16mm, captures Granduciel at the historic Panoramic studio in Stinson Beach, California.
The War On Drugs’ particular combination of intricacy and imagination animates the 10 songs of I Don’t Live Here Anymore, buttressing the feelings of Granduciel’s personal odyssey. It’s an expression of rock ’n’ roll’s power to translate our own experience into songs we can share and words that direct our gaze toward the possibility of what is to come.
The War On Drugs’ 2022 tour takes the band to some of the largest venues they’ve ever played, including their first headlining show at Madison Square Garden, as well as Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium, the Bill Graham Civic Center in San Francisco, the Ryman Auditoriumin Nashville, two nights at the Chicago Theatre, Philadelphia’s Metropolitan, the House of Bluesin Boston, and beyond. The full North American and European itinerary is below. Tickets are on sale here on Friday, July 23rd at 10am local time.
Pre-order I Don’t Live Here Anymore
I Don’t Live Here Anymore Tracklist
1. Living Proof
2. Harmonia’s Dream
3. Change
4. I Don’t Wanna Wait
5. Victim
6. I Don’t Live Here Anymore
7. Old Skin
8. Wasted
9. Rings Around My Father’s Eyes
10. Occasional Rain
The War On Drugs Tour Dates
(tickets on sale Fri. July 23 @ 10am local time)
Fri. Nov. 12 – Lake Perris, CA @ Desert Daze
Wed. Jan. 19 – Austin, TX @ ACL Live
Thu. Jan. 20 – Austin, TX @ ACL Live
Fri. Jan. 21 – Dallas, TX @ Toyota Music Factory
Sat. Jan. 22 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall
Mon. Jan. 24 – Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium
Tue. Jan. 25 – Atlanta, GA @ Tabernacle
Thu. Jan. 27 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Met Philadelphia
Fri. Jan. 28 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Met Philadelphia
Sat. Jan. 29 – New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden
Mon. Jan. 31 – Boston, MA @ House of Blues
Tue. Feb. 1 – Boston, MA @ House of Blues
Wed. Feb. 2 – Washington, DC @ Anthem
Fri. Feb. 4 – Columbus, OH @ Express Live!
Sat. Feb. 5 – Toronto, ON @ Queen Elizabeth Theatre
Sun. Feb. 6 – Toronto, ON @ Queen Elizabeth Theatre
Tue. Feb. 8 – Detroit, MI @ The Fillmore
Thu. Feb. 10 – Chicago, IL @ Chicago Theatre
Fri. Feb. 11 – Chicago, IL @ Chicago Theatre
Sat. Feb. 12 – Milwaukee, WI @ Riverside Theater
Sun. Feb. 13 – Milwaukee, WI @ Riverside Theater
Tue. Feb 15 – St. Paul , MN @ Palace Theatre
Wed. Feb. 16 – St. Paul, MN @ Palace Theatre
Fri. Feb. 18 – Denver, CO @ Mission Ballroom
Sat. Feb. 19 – Salt Lake City, UT @ The Union
Mon. Feb. 21 – Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre
Tue. Feb. 22 – Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre
Wed. Feb. 23 – Portland, OR @ Theater of the Clouds
Fri. Feb. 25 – San Francisco, CA @ Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
Sat. Feb. 26 – Los Angeles, CA @ Shrine Auditorium
Tue. March 22 – Helsinki, FI @ Helsinki Ice Hall
Thu. March 24 – Stockholm, SE @ Annexet
Sun. March 27 – Oslo, NO @ Sentrum Scene
Mon. March 28 – Oslo, NO @ Sentrum Scene
Wed. March 30 – Copenhagen, DK @ KB Hallen
Thu. March 31 – Copenhagen, DK @ KB Hallen
Sat. April 2 – Berlin, DE @ Verti Music Hall
Mon. April 4 – Zurich, CH @ Halle 622
Tue. April 5 – Milano, IT @ Alcatraz
Thu. April 7 – München, DE @ Zenith
Sat. April 9 – Paris, FR @ L’Olympia
Mon. April 11 – Birmingham, UK @ 02 Academy Birmingham
Tue. April 12 – London, UK @ The O2 Arena
Thu. April 14 – Dublin, IE @ 3 Arena
Sat. April 16 – Leeds, UK @ First Direct Arena
Mon. April 18 – Edinburgh, UK @ Edinburgh Corn Exchange
Wed. April 20 – Köln, DE @ Palladium
Thu. April 21 – Wiesbaden, DE @ Schlachthof
Fri. April 22 – Amsterdam, NL @ Ziggo Dome
Sat. April 23 – Antwerp, BE @ Sportpaleis
